WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION COLLABORATIVE CROSS-NATIONAL SURVEY

HBSC News

Sleep deprivation impacts our health and levels of wellbeing. This study investigated sleeping trends among Finnish teenagers, observing the effect of lack of sleep on school performance, and whether gender and age differences exist.

The analysis explored the connection between insomnia, tiredness and performance in Finnish Schools. Researchers from the HBSC national team and the Finnish School Health Promotion Study (SHPS) collaborated to analyse survey data from 1,136,583 11-18 year olds from students in 1984 and 2001.

Insomnia and tiredness increased from the mid-1990’s until the early 21st century. Those who were more tired performed worse in school, with these trends being more prevalent in girls.

The study also focused on gender differences in sleep trends and school performance. The HSBC study found that girls reported a long-term trend in insomnia-related symptoms between 1994 and 2006. SHPS also found that insomnia peeked among girls aged 15, yet chronic tiredness was a key factor for older teenagers of both genders.

Researchers have called for more to be done to tackle sleep deprivation among youth, due to its negative effect on mood and overall health and wellbeing. A prior analysis of HBSC data from Norway found that insomnia and sleeping difficulties increased in 1985-2005, which supports the findings of this latest publication and suggests that these sleeping trends are wide-spread and not confined to Finland.